I am so glad Jillian's back and it really does feel the show is back on track after the last two seasons, but *especially* last season's complete disaster. I get a Conda vibe from Pam on Jillian's team, but unlike Conda, Pam's not getting away w/any of her drama crap because Jillian won't let her get away w/it.

This is what was wrong last year. I was listening to Jillian's podcast last week (available free at iTunes) and it was interesting to listen to her talk about Dolvett early on. How she really didn't know him that well and they got into a bit of a difference of opinion on how to handle things like the first day when she booted half of her team out of the gym because they really weren't trying and then the one that upped and left after that "lil chat" her and Jill had. He was more along the line of, "Well...You know they're not used to this kind of work and we should ease them into it and..." You could tell Jill was trying *very* hard not to say something that would come across as some kind of a conflict between them when it wasn't, but....

I can't prove it, but...Call it instinct, but I've wondered if the mess of last year was them trying to be a bit different and ease off on things w/the Contestants and be more pally friend like and in turn....

While I think Dolvett's a good guy and I like him, it did seem like last Season was far more influenced by his way of doing things than the Biggest Loser/Bob way of doing things. As I said, I can't prove any of that and it's just a hunch, but combine that w/some of the things Jill was saying and I can't help but wonder about it.

One thing I do know...I know more of the names of people on teams on Week Three and care for how they're doing, when it took me till the first month and a half was done before I started doing the last season. By that time though, the ones I really liked and cared about were gone and Conda was in control, so...

One thing I love this season, other than the return of Jillian, is bringing in the kids. What a great idea and really does touch on what the show really does best. Inspiring and educating people about the obesity problem in this World of ours. I wonder what will happen next week w/Sunny, as it looks like there's going to be a bit of a bomb shell dropped there.

Anyway...I'm glad it's back and really back and I'm beyond happy Jillian's back too. It's good to see the old Biggest Loser back on my TV. Anyone else?

Thrilled that Jillian is back and that she's taking no prisoners! You go girl -- tell them like it is. Either put up & shut out or get out.

Count me in as another who thought Conda got away with faaaaaaaar too much and the show seemed to be driven by her. Probably the reason why I didn't spend much time watching compared to other season.

Bringing the kids on board -- what a great idea since so many kids seem to be heading for obesity. Many blame it on too much junk food in the schools but I think one thing that would really be helpful is to bring back phys ed in elementary school each.and.every.day! As much as I didn't enjoy it, it was definitely healthier for me. It also fostered an interest in learning new ways of playing old games. Like using a trampoline to play "baseball". Anyway, here's to cheering on the kids and Jillian.

Many blame it on too much junk food in the schools but I think one thing that would really be helpful is to bring back phys ed in elementary school each.and.every.day!

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NOOOOoooooooo. I hated P.E. classes so much in school, and the children would be all sweaty when they get back to classes. I think school should just stick with keeping out vending machines, serve healthy lunches and provide education on what it means to live a healthy lifestyle. But I would never, ever want to see mandatory P.E. classes back in school again.

But it got you moving. I was not a fan of PE, either, especially as a student in the 80s (didn't want to ruin my hair ), but I also watch how many of my students do nothing athletic.

We have one day a week where it is mandatory for the students to exercise for 45 minutes. This can include merely walking. It's amazing how many kids totally balk at this and whine to be able to sit down.

Well I didn't say I liked PE (actually I didn't like it most of the time) but it sure got us moving. You can remove all the junk you want out of the schools but kids are still likely to either 1) bring it from home or 2)eat it at home. Why not foster a good habit -- exercise. Most of the time when we "adults" wish to lose weight, we are told not only to watch what we eat but to exercise as well. If it's good enough for us to do as adults to become/stay healthy, then why would we not want to encourage the same in our children?
BTW, I absolutely HATED dodgeball and hated that it seemed to be what we often played on days that it was too rainy to have recess. Which reminds me of a question. How many children do any of you see actually running & playing in the school yard are the same ones having weight problems? Most of the ones I've seen who are running around and playing tend to be of normal weight. The ones who are overweight (and not necessarily obese) tend to be the ones who just stand around and do nothing but gab or stay in a corner by themselves.

As much as I despised having PE, it was actually good for me in a number of ways. Now if I could only motivate myself to go for walks more often but in the winter I just find it too darned cold and hard on my knees.

PL -- not surprised by the whining of students when they have to exercise for any length of time. Some of them just don't get it.

I don't think there is any data to show that phys ed makes a big difference in obesity rates. It might seem to be "common sense" that it would, but IME mostly what I think PE does is make kids hate certain sports which is certainly not going to benefit them in the long run. I think promoting sports outside of school works better.

Also, I think Jillian is a HORRIBLE trainer and that easing people into heavy exercising when they come from a background of absolutely no exercise is absolute the right way to do it. But then I hate The Biggest Loser and think it sets really bad examples on pretty much everything about losing weight and it's no surprise that most of the contestants just gain all that weight back.

For me, the problem w/PE was due to the medical conditions I've got, at that time it was reccomended for me to not do very much in case there was too much stress on my bones. Of course, we now know that's not right and I should have been doing far more, but that's the difference between now and then. Anyway...

I hated PE because both the Teacher *and* the Kids turned it into Hell on Earth for me. The Teacher was so digusted he had to modify anything in his class for one kid, he went out of his way to embrass me in front of the kids. Such as doing stuff he knew I couldn't do, on my own in front of the entire class, so figure out what ended up happening. Then the kids took that and just ran w/it.

Fast forward to HS and I loved my one and only semester of PE, as I only needed the one credit I only took it the one time. Reason being is there was only four of us due to all of us having various health issues/conditions and one heck of a great teacher. She realized for us, PE needed to be fun, so we did fun stuff. Like taking the one hall bordering the Gym where all the equipment rooms were, so we wouldn't distrurb anyone/a class, and turning it into our Floor Hockey "rink". That was one of my favourite times in HS. As I played Defence, it was one of the few times I was able to literally flatten someone and not get yelled at for it. (The joys of being legally blind... )

It was also thanks to her I finally learned how to skate backwards. Not well, but I could do it. Nearly also gave her a Heart Attack when I was trying to learn the skid stop by using the boards as a "base" and suddenly all anyone heard was this loud BOOM as I literally hip checked them. I was okay, but my left side of my leg was some funny looking colours for a few days.

Anyway...I think that could be the big thing about PE and kids these days. If it's not fun, they won't do it. If more fun activities could be brought into it, that could help change things. It will also trickle down to improving the results of those you know what fitness tests.

There's no easy answer, but to bring in healthier food options only goes so far. If kids aren't being active, then.... That's one thing I really hope this Season's Biggest Loser shows by working w/these kids. I thought it was a wonderful sign of how committed Biingo is to all of this was when he showed up last Monday for those Fitness Tests on crutches because he'd been playing Basketball, went for a throw and came down wrong on his foot and breaking a bone or two. As Bob said, not great it happened, but great in a way of how it happened because at least he was *doing* something active.

BTW, Jillian tweeted on either Friday or Saturday they had just finished filming this Season and we're going to be really surprised by who makes the Final Four. Evil, evil tease that woman is. But it's so good to have her back.

I don't think there is any data to show that phys ed makes a big difference in obesity rates. It might seem to be "common sense" that it would, but IME mostly what I think PE does is make kids hate certain sports which is certainly not going to benefit them in the long run. I think promoting sports outside of school works better.

Also, I think Jillian is a HORRIBLE trainer and that easing people into heavy exercising when they come from a background of absolutely no exercise is absolute the right way to do it. But then I hate The Biggest Loser and think it sets really bad examples on pretty much everything about losing weight and it's no surprise that most of the contestants just gain all that weight back.

Also, I think Jillian is a HORRIBLE trainer and that easing people into heavy exercising when they come from a background of absolutely no exercise is absolute the right way to do it. But then I hate The Biggest Loser and think it sets really bad examples on pretty much everything about losing weight and it's no surprise that most of the contestants just gain all that weight back.

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THIS! As someone who struggled with being overweight for years, this show makes me cringe. Yeah, if you use their method you will lose weight but more than likely you will gain it all back PLUS MORE. I firmly believe that in order to lose weight it must be done the healthy way, 1-2 lbs per week. It needs to be a lifestyle change that takes months, of not more than a year to learn, not just a few weeks of extreme exercising and diet. B.L's method is too extreme to sustain for the rest of your life.

I thought it was amusing that Jillian lost 3 of her 5 people within the first 2 episodes. With all the publicity about her returning it would be kind of embarrassing if she had no one to train by the time they got to singles.

PE classes in school are a good idea because they expose kids to many sports they would otherwise not have an opportunity to try. This is how I got involved in tennis and softball. Later in life I was able to play softball on a rec team at work, and it was great fun. Ditto with learning how to play volleyball which now comes in handy at backyard parties. I would never have done these sports on my own.

The other main benefit of PE is that it provides a break from studying and can be a big stress reliever. This is why colleges encourage students to take "physical activity" classes as electives. Too many students are wigging out over their grades and exams and they need a mental break as well as a healthy break to counteract all the junk food they might be ingesting during late night study sessions.

The problem with school PE is often the instructor. If you have a military style drill sargent that humiliates low achievers, then that is bad. However, if you have an instructor that wants you to have fun exercising, than that's good. My daughters experienced the former type, and because they skated after school, they did not need extra exercise on top of what they were doing for several hours after school. Unfortunately the PE instructor did not stretch the kids before telling them to run 2 miles, and this caused many muscle injuries. I was able to get my 2nd child out of PE in middle school after much petitioning because she was a national competitor and medalist, and she got press coverage, so they knew she was really exercising outside of school. It was a chore though getting out of PE in the public school system. There are state requirements for a certain number of hours earned doing PE and health classes. We finally were able to get independent study credits for PE and she took a summer independent study health class.

Why don't you attack me for something I have actually said or done in this thread instead of what you imagine I'm thinking?

To get back onto the subject of the thread, one of the things that bothers me about The Biggest Loser is that they set things up so there are all these "experts" and make it seem like they are concerned about the health and welfare of the contestants. This gives the idea that the things they do on the show are healthy and okay for everyone. We know from interviews with contestants that they are doing a lot of unhealthy things behind the scenes anyone who has researched anything at all about weight loss knows that a lot of what they do out in public isn't healthy or wise either. But someone who just watched the show without a critical eye gets not only unrealistic expectations about weight loss but can pick up some really bad practices.

I was particularly upset the season they had the contestants train for a marathon with hardly any guidance and several got injured from it. Instead of pointing out the right way to train to avoid injury, they gave them major kudos for "overcoming the pain" and doing the marathon anyway. Jillian in particular promotes this "pain is glory" way of thinking. I really doubt that she employed the techniques she uses on the show to lose her weight.

To get back onto the subject of the thread, one of the things that bothers me about The Biggest Loser is that they set things up so there are all these "experts" and make it seem like they are concerned about the health and welfare of the contestants. This gives the idea that the things they do on the show are healthy and okay for everyone. We know from interviews with contestants that they are doing a lot of unhealthy things behind the scenes anyone who has researched anything at all about weight loss knows that a lot of what they do out in public isn't healthy or wise either. But someone who just watched the show without a critical eye gets not only unrealistic expectations about weight loss but can pick up some really bad practices.

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Rather analogous to the same tired arguments that are made against weight loss surgery: the doctors are out to make a buck rather than care for patients, don't sufficiently warn patients about the side-effects and risks, and give patients unrealistic hopes about their chances of long-term success.

Why not let people decide, with the aid of a physician, what works best for them?

Jillian's style of tough love is not for everyone. People need to find a trainer who they can relate to and respond to positively. I know I would respond better to Bob's style than Jillian's. I need some positive encouragement along the way mixed with clear expectations. Jillian is just a little to pushy and in-your-face for my taste. There are nicer ways to say the things she does. Honestly, can't they make workouts fun like they are doing for the kids? How about doing some dancing, hiking, biking, etc.? Injecting some humor into the workout sessions would make it much more tolerable too. I would also like to see some cooking competitions in the house, where they reward the player who comes up with the most delicious dishes with the fewest calories, or maybe is able to "makeover" a traditional dish with fewer calories. These contestants need to learn how to use lower calorie ingredients for daily meals and a competition would make them more interested in learning this information.

I would also like to see some cooking competitions in the house, where they reward the player who comes up with the most delicious dishes with the fewest calories, or maybe is able to "makeover" a traditional dish with fewer calories. These contestants need to learn how to use lower calorie ingredients for daily meals and a competition would make them more interested in learning this information.

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They do, they do...and...they do.

I guess when it comes to watching this show, you don't, you don't...and...nopers...you don't.

Glad the show is back and Conda-less. Couldn't believe last season's cast and how it was completely littered with bullies. It was one of the first times that I tuned out in the middle of a season of any show.

I've just recently started running again and watching the show has added an extra kick of motivation for me to keep going and push on when I'm wanting to quit. I was inspired so much a few years ago by the show that I ran a marathon in 2010. After that I stopped running but now that I'm getting back into it I am shooting for another one sometime this year.

Kind of sad -- I read that this season is going to be very abbreviated due to the Voice coming back in March. Not that I like the drawn-out half-a-year seasons in the spring, but they're apparently booting off 3 more people next week, I feel like we're not going to really know half of the contestants at this rate.

But it got you moving. I was not a fan of PE, either, especially as a student in the 80s (didn't want to ruin my hair ), but I also watch how many of my students do nothing athletic.

We have one day a week where it is mandatory for the students to exercise for 45 minutes. This can include merely walking. It's amazing how many kids totally balk at this and whine to be able to sit down.

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Not really. I mostly remember coughing up lungs because of Presidential Physical Fitness tests with gym teachers who didn't believe in exercise-triggered asthma (they're lucky it wasn't like a few times as an adult where too much aerobic activity outdoors in warm weather actually caused anaphylactic HIVES--people with airborne allergies are actually not supposed to do intense outdoor activities that increase breathing, for reasons that should be obvious.) I didn't mind dodgeball as I eventually got fairly good at hitting people (same for floor hockey once we got to high school and only played other girls), but in general PE was a long exercise in teaching the less-adept to never, ever perform physical activities in public, ever. Forcing kids into traditional sports and gym activities like rope climbing helps those who are already good at them, but pretty much creates the dislike/fear of exercise in those who aren't good at them.

And I always question Jillian's motives when reading the ingredients on the diet "products" she endorses....tough coaching is one thing, essentially pushing legal amphetamines is quite another.

And I always question Jillian's motives when reading the ingredients on the diet "products" she endorses....tough coaching is one thing, essentially pushing legal amphetamines is quite another.

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The product placement on this show is hilarious. "Wow, this Extra Polar Ice sugar-free gum sure tastes great, and contains just five calories! I never tried Extra Polar Ice sugar-free gum before today, but now I just love Extra Polar Ice sugar-free gum! When I return home, I will be sure to chew Extra Polar Ice sugar-free gum and I will tell all my friends to chew Extra Polar Ice sugar-free gum too!"